While the US’s steps towards greater transparency concerning its drone programme may appear disingenuous, the UK needs to start moving in a similar direction. First published in The New Arab on 21 July 2016: A recent report from the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), designed to present some transparency to the US drone programme, has […]

A small group of Palestinians from war-torn Syria have found themselves among the rising migration flows from conflict-stricken countries in the Middle East and other regions. The presence of the Palestinians is one of many hidden migration trends occurring between Syria and Europe – hidden truths that are leading to migration officials asking the wrong […]

To target the heart of the Islamic State group, everyone knows that Raqqa is crucial. As their self-proclaimed capital, the Caliphate’s rule has played out in every part of life in this city. Women unable to travel alone, forced to cover, boys forced to join IS through beheadings and public executions – including crucifixions – […]

Russian air raids began in Syria on 3 September this year, targeting Islamic State group militants, in support of the Syrian government in helping to tackle the terrorist group’s spread in the region. While the message from Moscow is that only terrorist targets have been struck, the evidence gathered from international human rights NGOs is […]

Approval for the Government to go ahead and launch airstrikes on D’aesh strongholds led to tornado planes leaving the RAF base in Cyprus within hours, in order to conduct their first strikes, which they did so on one of the D’aesh held oil fields in the east. That seems to be the strategy going forward: bombing the oil fields to cut […]

Hours after a gruelling House of Commons debate on Syria UK tornado planes have carried out its first operation in Syria and conducted airstrikes. Yesterday, 11 hours of speeches and arguments saw 397 MPS vote in favour and 223 vote against Military action. Many of those speeches were applauded for their emphatic oration and many were lauded for technical […]

Last week, allies President Bashar al-Assad and President Vladimir Putin met in Moscow for further talks on the Syria crisis. The chat also gave Assad a chance to thank Putin for his campaign of airstrikes that started on 30 September. The claim has been that the strikes have fundamentally decreased the spread of “terrorism” by targeting […]